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The Bear: 10/21/05

Answers Posted October 21, 2005Question: Well Mike I would have to say I respectfully disagree on your answer to the question about the favorites in the East. Particularly in the point of team chemistry. Shouldn't the Pacers be fully united and have a chip on their shoulder while Miami has added guys in Walker, Williams, and Payton that have all been shown as selfish players at times throughout their careers. So my question would be why do you expect the Pacers to have team chemistry problems, but not the Miami Heat? (Joe from Carmel, Ind.)

Answer: Joe, you’re not the first person to disagree with me, and you definitely won’t be the last. The East is a three-team race between the Pacers, Heat and Pistons. All three teams have the ability to win the conference and all three have questions that could cause them to have problems. The Pacers have shown signs of how good of a team they can be in the preseason. It’s a matter of getting everybody healthy so Carlisle can use all his options. On paper, the Pacers are the deepest, and possibly the most talented, of three teams. The concern with them is how guys will deal having their minutes reduced and taking fewer shots. The Pacers will be better if they have three or four players average about 15 points a game instead of one superstar scoring most of the points. The Pacers will be fine if they can keep their egos in check and put their personal agendas aside. I talked about the Pistons and Heat in last week’s questions.

Question: Should the Pacers do as well as some project and as well as Jermaine suggests would make their season a success and they actually win the NBA title, would Reggie Miller get a ring... or does the fact that he was actually waived by the team place him on the outside looking in? I would imagine fans (me included) would all but demand he get something! (Brian from Arlington, Tex.)

Answer: It wouldn’t be surprising if the Pacers did offer Miller a championship ring if they won the title this season. Several Pacers, in particular Stephen Jackson, took it personal that Miller retired without winning a championship. Whether Miller would accept the ring is unknown since he didn’t play on the team.

Question: I liked Samaki Walker when he was with the Lakers. Do you think he'll make the Pacer squad and, if so, do you see him being a major contributor deep into the season? (Brian from Arlington, Tex.)

Answer: As of right now, I’d say Walker has the inside track on the final roster spot because of the number of injures the Pacers are dealing with in the frontcourt. Scot Pollard and Jeff Foster aren’t expected to be ready for the start of the season Nov. 2. It’s unknown if David Harrison will be ready for the opener at Orlando. You can never have too many big bodies.

Question: When are the Pacers players who were involved in the Detroit brawl going to do their community service? Will this be a distraction to the team and the Pacers' season? (Sam from Sydney, Australia)

Answer: The Pacers can do their community service whenever they want. I don’t think it will be a distraction considering everything they’ve been through in the past year. Many of them already do community service, like visiting schools, in the Indianapolis area. The players have to do half their community service in Michigan, but they’ll probably make sure it doesn’t interfere with what they’re trying to do on the basketball court.

Question: What in the world are the Pacers thinking, talking about bringing Artest off the bench? Is this a long term plan to test Granger as a possible replacement for Artest in the future? What do you think if they decide to do this? (Anthony from Indianapolis)

Answer: I would be surprised if coach Rick Carlisle brought Artest off the bench in the regular season. It would seem like a good idea from the standpoint that Artest would bring an added scoring punch off the bench and he doesn’t mind playing with the second unit. At the same time, though, you’re bringing a player off the bench that plays hard at both ends of the court, which doesn’t happen as much in the NBA anymore, and he’s an All-Star player.

Question: I attended the Minnesota game and lo and behold, Jonathan Bender was already in street clothes resting his knee. For all the reports out of the Pacers, Bender has always looked soooooo good in practice. But when it comes to game time, he's out and healing. Can you find out the real story about his knee? Are the Pacers just stuck with a player who'll never play? (David from Indianapolis)

Answer: To say the Pacers are being overly cautious with Bender would be an understatement. That’s understandable since you’re talking about a player that has spent the past three seasons watching games from the bench in street clothes because of injuries. Bender has said he’s being careful with his knee, which means its probably not 100 percent healthy, to avoid a setback in resurrecting his career. Bender has shown what he can do in the preseason. He’s got a quick drive to the basket and he tries to tear down the rim every time he goes up for a dunk. Pacer fans are going to have to hope Bender can be a contributor this season because he’s under contract for the next two seasons.

Re: The Bear: 10/21/05

I love it how he doesn't actually whats the word ANSWER the questions. Namely the first one. Instead of making an argument as to why the Pacers are different he just mutters the same stuff again.

And did anyone else notice in the old article, Wells is still under the assumption Walker is an all-star. Oh yeah by the way because its 2 people sharing power in miami, it could never end up like LA, you know that involved Kobe(1) and Shaq(2), Wait a cotton picking minute here.

Re: The Bear: 10/21/05

Pacer fans are going to have to hope Bender can be a contributor this season because he’s under contract for the next two seasons

Mr. Obvious says thanks mike for lending no insight on anything

The Pacers will be fine if they can keep their egos in check and put their personal agendas aside. I talked about the Pistons and Heat in last week’s questions.

Standard answer to give on alot of teams but,,,
really if you think about it... You can call some of the players alot of things but Selfish and Ego Driven is not one.
Short Tempered. Emotional, a little crazy sometimes but certainly not crying about not getting enought looks..? Unless he knows something we don't

Re: The Bear: 10/21/05

That rumor has been circulating for years. There is a correlation between Ron Artest shooting three-pointers with lots of time on the shot clock and Rick benching him for "conduct detrimental to winning." Fans certainly complain about how many shots JO takes when double-teamed. Stephen Jackson's shot selection is always questionable at best, and has led to some obvious shouting matches on the bench. I know a good number of fans that were sick of the Fred Jones ballhog show from last season, and one poster even had the audacity to call Tinsley a shoot-first PG.

So The Bear may know something you don't, but if you pay attention long enough its easy to see why so many PD regulars, and even the Chior, are concerned about this team disintegrating into "Selfish and Ego Driven".

I try not to speak for the entire Brigade in every single post, but I thought The Bear was just pointing out the obvious here.

Why do the things that we treasure most, slip away in time
Till to the music we grow deaf, to God's beauty blind
Why do the things that connect us slowly pull us apart?
Till we fall away in our own darkness, a stranger to our own hearts
And life itself, rushing over me
Life itself, the wind in black elms,
Life itself in your heart and in your eyes, I can't make it without you

Re: The Bear: 10/21/05

That rumor has been circulating for years. There is a correlation between Ron Artest shooting three-pointers with lots of time on the shot clock and Rick benching him for "conduct detrimental to winning." Fans certainly complain about how many shots JO takes when double-teamed. Stephen Jackson's shot selection is always questionable at best, and has led to some obvious shouting matches on the bench. I know a good number of fans that were sick of the Fred Jones ballhog show from last season, and one poster even had the audacity to call Tinsley a shoot-first PG.

So The Bear may know something you don't, but if you pay attention long enough its easy to see why so many PD regulars, and even the Chior, are concerned about this team disintegrating into "Selfish and Ego Driven".

I try not to speak for the entire Brigade in every single post, but I thought The Bear was just pointing out the obvious here.

Sorry I have not missed a game and I do not see it to the extent you are referring sure from time to time shot selections are questionable but to the point of everyone having thier own agenda and everyone turning into ball hogs to the point of breaking the team down ,call me naive ... I don't see it.

I know it always sounds more educated and maybe more prudent and savvy to be hesitant to praise anything and everything as opposed to look on the bright side, but that's how I see this one or don't see it as the case may be.

Perhaps I will need to look a little closer the next game to catch it.......

Re: The Bear: 10/21/05

I'm only saying that just because you hisorically haven't thought it was a problem, in part because his predecessor was cuddly-soft about it, doesn't make his statement more or less insighful.

Unless he knows something we don't

Lots of us know just how bad team chemistry/ selfish ego problems have been the past few years. It makes it out publicly from time-to-time. JO is going out of his way to point out that he and Ron are just starting to build a relationship after having been teammates for several seasons.

I'm sorry, its taken me a bazillion paragraphs to say this. Had you just said, "Unless he knows something I don't" I probably wouldn't even have touched it. But just because you see it differently, for whatever reason, doesn't mean there aren't a few of us that have seen it all along. Too many double negatives, sorry.

Now there's one other variable - some of us have been seeing this chemistry / ego problem for so long that it will take us a while to recognize if its getting better or not.

Unfortunately, things like Game #1 of the preseason and Ron's bizarre media circus (not his fault, but he could at least try to sound somewhat smart don'tcha think?) will only delay that process.

Why do the things that we treasure most, slip away in time
Till to the music we grow deaf, to God's beauty blind
Why do the things that connect us slowly pull us apart?
Till we fall away in our own darkness, a stranger to our own hearts
And life itself, rushing over me
Life itself, the wind in black elms,
Life itself in your heart and in your eyes, I can't make it without you

Re: The Bear: 10/21/05

How many shots does JO take while actually double teamed. A second guy may drift over as he is in the motion of shooting, but I don't seem to remember him getting it in the post and deliberately shooting over a clearly defined double team.....

Re: The Bear: 10/21/05

Ok, I see what you're saying .

I guess the reasons that Mike gave for the team's demise, I found odd, only due to the fact that , if this team where to falter , I would have guessed it would have been due to suspensions, injuries, the normal gammit. And not selfishness. I would have thought he would reserve that for say Miami.

Re: The Bear: 10/21/05

Well, don't let my crabbiness sway your opinion either way. You should call it as you see it, just like I will.

Why do the things that we treasure most, slip away in time
Till to the music we grow deaf, to God's beauty blind
Why do the things that connect us slowly pull us apart?
Till we fall away in our own darkness, a stranger to our own hearts
And life itself, rushing over me
Life itself, the wind in black elms,
Life itself in your heart and in your eyes, I can't make it without you

Re: The Bear: 10/21/05

I wouldn't argue with bare as in barely any new insight. People are hoping Jon will be healthy? The Pacers can play selfishly? Walker might get signed? Our centers are hurt? Reggie may get offered a ring by the team if we win this year? And he may or may not accept it?

I actually don't dislike Wells but the bear is a little too hero worship-ish for me.

"They could turn out to be only innocent mathematicians, I suppose," muttered Woevre's section officer, de Decker.

"'Only.'" Woevre was amused. "Someday you'll explain to me how that's possible. Seeing that, on the face of it, all mathematics leads, doesn't it, sooner or later, to some kind of human suffering."

Re: The Bear: 10/21/05

I thought it was just because he wasn't soft-as-charmin on them.

Nobody has said he's "the fox".

Why do the things that we treasure most, slip away in time
Till to the music we grow deaf, to God's beauty blind
Why do the things that connect us slowly pull us apart?
Till we fall away in our own darkness, a stranger to our own hearts
And life itself, rushing over me
Life itself, the wind in black elms,
Life itself in your heart and in your eyes, I can't make it without you